News

Raleigh, NC– An exciting, vibrant future has been proposed for a tract of non-aviation land currently owned by RDU airport. The Conservation Fund submitted a fair market offer of nearly $6.5 million to the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority to purchase a 105.46 acre parcel, known locally as the “Oddfellows” tract. The parcel of land sits between Wake County’s Lake Crabtree County Park and William B. Umstead State Park, and encompasses many miles of hiking and biking trails that are beloved by the community. The land would be preserved as an expansion of Umstead State Park, extending recreational trails and protecting a critical nexus of greenway connectivity in the Triangle Region.

The proposed purchase is a welcome alternative to a plan under consideration by RDU to lease the land for the construction of a new quarry. Construction of a new quarry would destroy the land and trails forever, while providing RDU only a modest short-term profit. The quarry plan has fervent community opposition, with close to 7,500 supporters signing a petition that opposes a new quarry and urges RDU to preserve the land as a forested recreational space.

The Conservation Fund’s proposal to purchase the land for Umstead State Park is an opportunity for RDU to collaborate with the community to protect valued recreational land, while realizing revenue from land that is not needed for aviation use. The Conservation Fund and its partners are prepared to raise public and private funds to finance the purchase, and the Fund proposes to close the purchase on August 31, 2018.

Community groups, united as the RDU Forest Coalition, celebrate the Conservation Fund’s proposal as a momentous move forward towards preservation of Umstead State Park and Wake County’s Lake Crabtree County Parks, and their surrounding recreational areas. “We are extremely hopeful that RDU is ready to work with the community to expand Umstead State Park and protect an irreplaceable and popular recreational space that has been enjoyed by locals for decades,” says Jean Spooner, Chair of the Umstead Coalition. “We see this as a win-win solution for both RDU and the community, and we’re excited about the opportunity for expanded hiking and mountain biking opportunities in such a popular, central area” added Dave Anderson, advocacy chair for the Triangle Off-Road Cyclists (TORC).

Two design charrettes are planned on September 12, 2016, at the PNC Area. Come to either the morning or afternoon session to participate in designing the project, including the bicycle and pedestrian facilities as well as the Wade Avenue Bridge improvements.

When: September 12, 2016
Where: PNC Arena Club – East

Please take the opportunity to attend one of two identical sessions:

Morning Session: 9:00 am – 12 noon

Afternoon Session: 1:30 pm – 4:30 pm

Cannot Attend These Session?Please mark your calendar for one of the Board and Commission Meetings in order to provide input on the ideas captured during the charrette. The project team will be in attendance to talk with the public about the ideas. There will be a brief presentation on the project during each of the three meetings.

UNC-TV Special- Saving the Best: North Carolina State Parks at 100 aired as a celebration of the 100 year anniversary of NC State Parks and is a tribute to the men and women who work and volunteer in our parks, as well as the 15 million visitors who use our parks each year. Watch carefully and you will see a LOT of Umstead State Park footage! You can now stream the show on-line:http://video.unctv.org/video/2365652565

The Bond passed by overwhelming majority of voters in March 2016 elections.

Thanks for everyone's support in contacting your legislatures -- because of YOU and the help of Friends of State Parks the Senators went from $0 to $75 Million for NC State Parks in this bond and the House passed the revised version. All NC State Parks have projects, but the funding level was decreased from the requested total of $100 million.

In addition, the passed budget funded the Parks and Recreational Trust Fund. No Park staff positions were lost (as was in some earlier budget versions). The legislature also include a provision thatpreventsNC State Parks from charging parking or entrance fees!

The budget also allows for 'dynamic pricing' meaning that the NC Division of Parks and Recreation (NC State Parks) has the ability to use market pricing strategies (e.g., charge less in non-peak times for a campsite or more for a lakefront campsite as compared to a third row).

The bill that proposed to transfer land from Umstead State Park to the RDU airport (for development) failed -- again, thanks for everyone's help getting that terrible idea defeated!!

Please join The Umstead Coalition and Friends of State Parks in thanking our NC Representatives and Senators for their vision to help NC State Parks!

State Parks is now in the new Department of Natural and Cultural Resources! Please see the email below from our new Secretary Susan Kluttz on September 18.

Welcome to the new N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources! With this name change, four divisions - the N.C. Zoological Park, the N.C. Aquariums, N.C. the N.C. State Parks, the N.C. Museums of Natural Sciences, along with the Clean Water Management Trust Fund and the Natural Heritage Program - create the Nature component to join with Arts, History and Library into one great agency. Together, we will continue to promote all of the state-owned treasures that make North Carolina such an amazing place. We truly value all of these rich assets and their contribution to our State's quality of life, and we are committed to making sure they are protected and supported. I am thrilled that you will be joining our team. We look forward to incorporating your efforts toward conservation of N.C.'s natural heritage to our current focus on preserving, protecting and promoting the state's cultural resources. In addition, it's clear we already share an incredible mission in education. Most importantly, you will be joining a team of professional, passionate and innovative people - just like you - who are looking forward to learning from you and growing with you. I am confident that, together, we will become even stronger as we collaborate on our joint vision to being leaders in using the state's natural and cultural resources to build the social, cultural, educational and economic future of North Carolina. We are excited to be working with you. I recognize that with such a change, you may have questions. Many of your divisions' leaders have been working with us for the past few months to prepare for this transition. Please check our list of Frequently Asked Questions at http://portal.ncdenr.org/group/denr<http://portal.ncdenr.org/group/denr> or send your specific questions to transferinfo@ncdcr.gov<mailto:transferinfo@ncdcr.gov> and we will try to get an answer to you as quickly as possible. Thank you for your patience as we work through other details together. It is our goal to minimize any disruptions for you and of the effective services you provide while we simultaneously try to effectively build our expanded department. I am also available to you, so please let me know if there is anything I can do to help.

Fortunately, this bill is 'on-hold' (and we hope 'dead') in the Senate Rules and Operations Committee. Senator John Alexander has reached out to The Umstead Coalition to let us know that IF the bill goes forward, he would bring the various parties together to work out a solution that would help all parties.

Dr. Jean Spooner was presented with the "Locke Craig Award" by the North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation on March 3, 2015 for her dedication and service to William B. Umstead State Park. She accepted with a message of gratitude to the thousands of volunteers who have supported William B. Umstead State Park.